Florida ged plus college Preparation Program Curriculum and Resource Guide

What Can Teachers Do?

Teachers should:

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  Help students gain their own questioning skills. Have students formulate a series of questions about a specific passage that they have read. Provide each student with a copy of the same text and have them develop three to five questions that they can then share with their fellow students.
  
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  Help students look for details and evidence. Take time to preview text with students, pointing out the format of the text, key vocabulary words, and captions that accompany photographs or other graphics.
  
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  Ask several questions. Develop questions that you want students to answer. Do not limit yourself to the basics of who, what, when, and where but more on the “how” and “why” that can be concluded based on the information provided in a passage or text. If you have difficulty thinking of higher-order questions, use the question starters included in this guide.
  
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  Connect learning to students’ experiences in a contextual situation. Make learning more relevant by using real-life situations to explain more complex concepts and principles. Students have a wealth of real-life experiences. Use those experiences to better explain text to students. Have students draw their own comparisons based on personal experiences.
  
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  Move students from knowledge to evaluation by providing events of learning, increase inductive and deductive questions, use more analogies and metaphors, provide direct instruction with cooperative questioning.
  

1. 
   Are your teaching objectives, activities, and assessments tied to higher-level behavioral verbs?
   
2. 
   Do all learners have the opportunity to interact with you and others?
   
3. 
   Do you allow time in your courses for debating?
   
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   Do your learners have to use inductive and deductive strategies?
   
5. 
   Do you find yourself using “shock” statements and questions to get your learners’ minds running?
   

1. 
   Facts – students acquire information. Unfortunately, studies show that unless facts are continuously applied, there is a 90% loss over time. Also, “just the facts” leaves little opportunity for motivation.
   
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   Concepts – students process information and develop understanding of how information is related. There is less of an opportunity for loss and more opportunity for motivation through the use of concepts.
   
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   Personal Meaning – students integrate and internalize learning. This type of learning is more likely to endure over time and provides the greatest opportunity for motivation.
   
4. 
   Comprehensive Learning – students experience significant lasting changes in attitudes and in their ability to do more and continue the learning process with this type of learning.
   

Applying Bloom’s Taxonomy in the Florida GED PLUS Classroom

The following chart provides an overview of the types of materials and/or situations that teachers can use at each of the six levels of critical thinking as well as measurable behaviors that can and should be demonstrated at each level.

Bloom's Level	Materials / Situations	Measurable Behaviors
Knowledge Recall facts, definitions, vocabulary Identify Describe and enumerate Lists, matches and names Records and reproduces	Events, people, newspapers, magazine articles, definitions, videos, dramas, textbooks, films, television programs, recordings, media presentations	Define, describe, memorize, label, recognize, name, draw, state, identify, select, write, locate, recite
Comprehension Explain Infer and generalize Give examples Order steps in a process Read charts and graphs Identify relationships	Speech, story, drama, cartoon, diagram, graph, summary, outline, analogy, poster, bulletin board	Summarize, restate, paraphrase, illustrate, match, explain, defend, relate, infer, compare, contrast, generalize
Application Solve a problem Demonstrates Modify based on information Implements	Diagram, puzzle, sculpture, illustration, dramatization, forecast, problem, organizations, classifications, rules, systems, routines	Apply, change, put together, construct, discover, produce, make, report, sketch, solve, show, collect, prepare
Analysis Compare and contrast Distinguish from other similar ideas Judge completeness Recognize relevance and irrelevance Recognize fact or fiction	Survey, questionnaire, an argument, a model, displays, demonstrations, diagrams, systems, conclusions, reports, graphed information	Examine, classify, categorize, research, contrast, compare, disassemble, differentiate, separate, investigate, subdivide
Synthesis Form a hypothesis Develop alternatives Combines or reorganizes Communicate ideas Draw conclusions	Experiment, game, song, report, poem, prose, speculation, creation, art, invention, drama, rules	Combine, hypothesize, construct, originate, create, design, formulate, role-play, develop
Evaluation Judge the accuracy of information Critique/appraise Reframes Develop criteria Identify values	Recommendations, self-evaluations, group discussions, debate, court trial, standards, editorials, values	Compare, recommend, assess, value, apprise, solve, criticize, weigh, consider, debate

Strategy - Use Critical Thinking Questions

There are four levels of questions that teachers should incorporate into their lessons. Students need an opportunity to regularly engage in question and answer sessions with their teachers that require them to use higher-order thinking skills.

Teachers in the Florida GED PLUS program should include questions from each of the following levels. A brief overview of each level has been provided as well as some “question starters.”

Level I – Low Order Convergent

These questions require students to engage in reproducing information. Emphasis is on memorization and recitation. These questions cover Bloom’s knowledge level.

Knowledge Question Starters

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  What is…?
  
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  Where is …?
  
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  How would you show…?
  
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  When did … happen?
  
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  Can you recall…?
  

Level II – High-Order Convergent
These questions require students use productive thinking. Students must understand and mentally organize information. These questions require students to summarize, explain, translate, paraphrase, and compare. They cover Bloom’s comprehension and application levels.
Comprehension Question Starters

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  How would you classify the type of …?
  
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  How would you rephrase the meaning of…?
  
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  What is the main idea of …?
  
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  Which statements support…?
  
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  How would you summarize…?
  

Application Question Starters

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  What examples can you find to…?
  
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  What approach would you use to…?
  
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  What would happen if…?
  
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  What other way would you plan to…?
  
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  What elements would you choose to change…?
  

Level III – Low Order Divergent
These questions require students to supply a reason or cause, citing evidence to support their answers. Students must be able to identify implications, provide evidence, make inferences, deduce, draw conclusions, and analyze cause and effect. These questions cover Bloom’s analysis level.
Analysis Question Starters

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  What are the parts or features of…?
  
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  How is _____ related to…?
  
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  What conclusions can you draw…?
  
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  What evidence can you find…?
  
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  What is the relationship between…?
  

Level IV – High Order Divergent
These questions require students to respond creatively and originally to problems and scenarios. Students must be able to speculate, formulate an opinion, propose solutions, place value, make judgments, and generate possibilities. These questions cover Bloom’s synthesis and evaluation levels.
Synthesis Question Starters

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  What changes would you make to…?
  
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  How would you improve…?
  
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  What could be combined to change…?
  
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  Suppose you could_____ what would you do…?
  
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  Can you predict the outcome if…?
  

Evaluation Question Starters

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  What is your opinion of…?
  
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  Would it be better if…?
  
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  How would you rate…?
  
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  What judgment would you make about…?
  
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  Based on what you know, how would you…?
  

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